Nov. 27, 2009

Game Notes in Printable PDF Format

Interactive Game Notes with Audio:

The LMU men's basketball team returns home for the second time in the young season, taking on yet another program predicted to make it to the NCAA tournament as its conference winner. This time it is UC Santa Barbara, and the Gauchos will come to Gersten Pavilion Saturday, Nov. 28 for a tip-off at 7:30 p.m. It is the first 20th Anniversary Throw-Back game of the season and the Lions will be wearing their throw-back jersey's in honor of the 20th Anniversary of the 1989-90 men's basketball team that went to the Elite Eight. The game can be heard on KXLU 88.9 FM.

INSIDE THE LIONS
The Lions, who do not feature a senior on the roster and started a freshman, three sophomores and a junior against USC, are 2-4 on the season after falling to Tulsa on the road, 79-65, Tuesday night. Sophomore Drew Viney, who sat last year after transferring from Oregon, has scored 84 points in the last four games and is leading three players with double figures after six games with 17.3 per game. Junior Larry Davis did not play against Tulsa due to swelling in his Achilles Heal and will be a game time decision against UCSB. He is second on the team with 13.2 points through the first four games. Davis served his redshirt season after transferring from Seton Hall last year. Vernon Teel, who led the team last year in scoring, is averaging 11.7 points per game this season. Teel has been the spark plug for the Lions, going for 5.8 rebounds (second on the team), 6.3 assists (2nd in WCC) and 1.33 steals per game. Sophomore Jarred DuBois is fourth on the team in scoring with 9.7 per game, scoring his season-high of 17 against USC. Freshman Edgar Garibay, who earned is in the starting line-up, averages of 25.7 minutes a game and is averaging 8.0 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.20 blocks per game. He has scored 12 points in each of the last two games.

TOUGH STRETCH
The LMU men's non-conference schedule is quite loaded. The Lions will be playing their second straight unbeaten team when UCSB comes to Gersten Pavilion. LMU will play five of nine games from Nov. 15 through Dec. 12 against teams picked by Sports Illustrated in their annual college basketball preview edition to advance to this year's NCAA tournament. Montana (Nov. 15, Dec. 10) has been picked to win the Big Sky, Tulsa (Nov. 24) has been picked to represent Conference USA, UC Santa Barbara (Nov. 28) has been selected to win the Big West, and Notre Dame (Dec. 12) has been selected to represent the Big East. Also mixed in that stretch is a trip to Wyoming (Dec. 5) of the Mountain West Conference and USC (Nov. 21) of the Pac-10.

A NEW LOOK - QUICK HITTERS
• Jarred DuBois scored a season-high 17 points to lead three Lions in double figures as the Lions earn their first win on the USC campus since the first game of the 1976-77 season, a span of 33 years. It is also the first overall road win since Dec. 8, 2007 against Boise State, snapping a streak of 24 games. It was also the first win against a Pac-10 team since the Lions beat the Trojans on Dec. 4, 1995, 86-83, at Gersten Pavilion.
• After six games, LMU has outrebounded five of six teams this season, holding a rebound margin of +3.7. They outrebounded opponents just seven times all of last season. They had their work cut out for them against Tulsa, who held a +14.5 rebound margin thanks mainly to 7'0" Jerome Jordan. They finished outrebounding the Lions by just eight, 44-36.
• LMU has showed it has a young, new roster with four different starting line-ups in six games. The win over USC with the fourth different line-up.
• The Lions scored 87 and 83 points in their first two games, respectively, going for more than 80 points in consecutive games since the 2005-06 season. The Lions defeated San Diego 94-76 on Feb. 6, 2006 and then Pepperdine in overtime, 89-78, on Feb. 11. The Lions are averaging 18.1 more points than a year ago, putting in 73.8 points per game this season after averaging just 55.7 a year ago.
• The 87 points against Boise State was the most since the Lions scored 97 in an overtime win at Mercer on Nov. 24, 2007. It is the most points in regulation since 88 at Pepperdine on Feb. 17, 2007. The Lions had just one game of 70 points a year ago, after four games this season they have three.
• The 23-point win over North Dakota (83-60) was the largest margin of victory since Nov. 24, 2004 when LMU travelled to Greeley, Colo., and defeated Northern Colorado 83-51.
• The Lions had 16 steals in the win over North Dakota, leading to 25 points. It was the most steals in a single game since they had 17 in an 83-79 overtime loss to Portland on Feb. 16, 2002. They have 46 through six games this season. At the same point last year, they had 29.
• Larry Davis scored 22 points in his first game as a Lion against Boise State. It was the best debut by a Lion since Brandon Worthy scored 24 games in his first game as a true freshman on Nov. 22, 2002 against Loyola-Chicago.
• The Lions opened the 2008-09 season going 0-for-8 from the three-point line, snapping a stretch of 375 games with a three-point field goal. It was a different story to start 2009-10 as the Lions went 8-for-17 from behind the arch against Boise State and then 9-for-20 against North Dakota. The Lions are tops in the WCC hitting 40-for-84 (47.6 percent) through six games. So happens the Lions are hitting 45.6 percent from the field (162-for-355). After six games in 2008-09, the Lions shot 29-88 (36.3 percent) from three.
• LMU has scored 87 points off turnovers through six games this season. They had 67 through six games last year.
• Freshman Edgar Garibay has eight blocks, sophomore Kevin Young, who set the freshman record last year with 34 blocks, has seven while sophomore Drew Viney has three blocks this season to pace the Lions, who have 23 as a team. In 2008-09 the Lions did not have a block in their first four games and did not crack a baker's dozen until game 16 of the season against Cal State Bakersfield on Jan. 4, 2009.

A LOOK AHEAD
The Lions return home for a 20th Anniversary Throw-Back game on Nov. 28 when they play UC Santa Barbara at 7:30 p.m. The Lions will wear the same home uniforms worn by the 1989-90 team. The game is also part of a tripleheader of basketball at Gersten Pavilion, coming at the end of two games as part of the women's basketballt thanksgiving tournament. This will be the 86th all-time between UCSB and LMU, one of the longest running non-conference rivalrys in LMU history. The Lions hold a 58-37 edge in the series, going 21-9 at home. UCSB, who enters the game 3-0, has won the last two meetings, including an 81-61 a year ago in Santa Barbara. They will then conclude a two-game homestand with Academy of Art University on Dec. 2 at 7:05 p.m. LMU hit the road against as they travel to the Rockies to take on Wyoming on Dec. 5. Tip-off is 6 p.m. (PT) For tickets to all home games, go online at TICKET CENTRAL.